Behind the Scenes with the AntiSocial Social Team

The Social Media Department: A corner of the AntiSocial Headquarters known for pettin' dogs and gettin' things done.

The AntiSocial Social Media Department is made up of rappers, writers, poets, dancers, bloggers, business owners, stay-at-home astronauts (looking at you, Oli), mixologists, and so much more. They’re the type of people who check in with you when you’ve had a bad week and will give you their genuine opinion about everything from creative briefs to your new bangs.

They work hard, they love harder, and they know how many hashtags is too many hashtags.

And, now that we’re officially looking to expand our social team, we decided to sit down with their department to see exactly what it’s like when your agency job is running social for big brands.

What it's like:

On any given day you can find members of the social team shopping for props, planning out brand aesthetics, styling food, producing videos, copywriting, or brainstorming concepts.

While interviewing for this article, one thing kept coming up again and again: At AntiSocial, we have the opportunity to take an idea, create a concept from it, and see the project through to the final stages. We work for a rare company that offers it’s team members a huge amount of creative freedom and our clients trust us to create great campaigns that elevate their brand. Most of the time, the ideas we come up with are approved immediately. If we can dream it, we can usually produce it. There’s something incredible about watching your idea unfold from start to finish.

“The best thing about working at AntiSocial? It’s the team, number one. And number two? We almost always get the green light right away for our ideas.” – Andrew Tatton

Additionally, AntiSocial offers all things digital media in-house. So, not only is the social team creating a concept for a brand, but their working alongside the media team to see it come full-circle. They attend photo shoots and are producers on promo videos they’ve dreamed up. They’re a part of the editing process, voice-over creation, and background music choice. They’re involved in the metrics, too — working with our Paid Advertising department to see how effective strategies are, and reporting that back to clients.

Words from the team:

I sat down with the social team to see exactly what they thought about working together and for AntiSocial. The responses were overwhelmingly positive.

What do you guys like about your job?

Melissa Tolentino: “We work with a group of people who are very creative and alike in a lot of ways and accepting of each other. Everyone is a team player, and everyone works really hard. We’re a diverse group.”

Our newest hire, Oli Dickerson, who landed at AntiSocial after he moved from London adds: “It’s a real community feel here. That’s one of the benefits of small agencies. It’s almost like working with mates instead of bosses — I don’t feel bad about going up and chatting at work. It’s laid back but everyone still works hard.”

All of us in the room felt Oli’s statement. Our department heads are easy-to-talk-to coworkers and the co-founders of AntiSocial work alongside us, supporting us in our creative endeavours. Because we’re a smaller agency a feeling of familiarity exists between all corporate levels but there’s an unspoken understanding that we’re here because we work hard and we’re good at what we do.

Tee Krispil: “Autonomy — there’s a trust that stuff will get done, there’s no micromanaging.”

And, on that note, Ekke Kanda adds: “Flexible schedules. You can come and go when you want.”

A flex schedule works well within our company. Like Tee mentioned, we have autonomy over our work production and because of that, we can work when we’re most productive. We’re welcome to make work happen around our lives, instead of the other way around. The flex schedules and autonomy creates an environment that supports a healthy work-life balance.

On overcoming challenges:

We’d be lying if we didn’t say there are challenges with the work we do. But, you can’t succeed without failing.

Nicole Wei: “Being involved in everything inherently exposes us to all the ways a project can go wrong. But, communication in our department and our team is huge and valued.”

We work through problems together, if someone’s struggling with a project they know they can rely on everyone else in our agency to help. The social team is committed to self-care and prioritizing your mental health.

Aisha Fawkes: “We support each other in our other endeavours and do check-ins and see how people are feeling.”

And, we're looking for a new social team member!

Words of wisdom for people thinking about applying:

Melissa Tolentino: “We work with cool and well-known brands and come up with great campaigns. Our clients have a diverse range of industries so after working here for a couple of years you’ll have all the experience in the world. You’ll be prepared for any industry.”

Nicole Wie: “We’re the only department that’s involved in everything. I love collaborating with different departments, it’s rare that you’re sitting there working doing your own work.”

Mitra Barber: “This job is perfect if you are willing to learn, multitask like crazy, and put yourself out there. Be ready to work. If you are here to be a sponge and absorb and work with really cool people and clients, then this is the place for you.”

Melissa Tolentino standing in as a 'rib eating model' for photographer Warren Fenton, who needed to focus his camera.

You too could be a stand-in model for a Save-On-Foods BBQ shoot.

For most of our clients, social media is the face of their company. It’s where they talk to their audience, promote their services, and engage with their community. The end result is an amalgamation of brand tonality, cohesive aesthetics, and happy followers. What we don’t see is the blood, sweat, and tears the social department pours into each account. To say they work hard is an understatement. But, the team at AntiSocial always has each other’s backs. They check in with each other, uphold a healthy work-life balance, and, I can honestly say from experience, are the most fun people to work with.